Red Bulls Academy Update: March 28

March 28, 20112:47 PM EDT

Billy Jones

Red Bull U-18s go undefeated on weekend: On Saturday, the U-18 Red Bulls fought off an early setback to come away with at 3-1 victory over FC Delco. In the first minute, midfielder Oscar Gonzalez lost a ball in the midfield and the FC Delco forward raced past Clint Caso and was then brought down by Caso 20 yards from goal. As Caso was the “last man”, he received his marching orders from the referee and the U18s were forced to play a man down for the remaining 89 minutes. Despite the setback, the team quickly reorganized its formation and took hold of the game by controlling possession. In the 7th minute, Kyle McCord put the Red Bulls in the lead with a great solo effort as he took a Paul Ehrenworth through ball that was flicked on by Dan Metzger. McCord beat several FC Delco defenders and rifled a shot into the top corner from the edge of the 6 yard box. In the 43rd minute, forward Brandon Allen doubled the lead after another great ball over the top from Paul Ehrenworth. However, the two goal lead did not last long as FC Delco converted a penalty kick in the 44 th minute when Red Bulls goalkeeper Keith Cardona brought down an FC Delco player after a scramble in the box.

“At half-time we talked about staying organized and really improving our communication. It was actually great that we played against Argentina this week because all we did against them was defend in our half of the field and be tight and compact. Besides the penalty kick in the first half, I think our team did a great job limiting the chances that Delco had” stated U18 captain Bryan Gallego.

In the second half, FC Delco did not force Cardona into making a save. In the 95th minute, midfielder Konrad Plewa converted the team’s third goal after a great individual run. Plewa beat several Delco players and slipped the ball wide to Damian Bziukiewicz on the right flank. The ensuing shot from Bziukiewicz was saved by the Delco goalkeeper and then Plewa blasted home the rebound for the goal that sealed the game.

“It was a great effort by the boys today. This was a true test of character and team spirit and I think this team showed that they are going to be difficult to beat this year” stated Head Coach Paul O’Donnell.

On Sunday, The Red Bulls followed up their strong performance the day before with a 3-0 win over PA Classics. The squad made six changes to the lineup from the previous day but still came away with the shutout, displaying great team depth.

Despite struggling to find the net early, the U18s dominated the first half in possession. The Red Bulls finally broke through in the 43rd minute as Brandon Allen slotted home the opening goal on a neat pass from Damian Bziukiewicz.

“Our coaches wanted us to play with more urgency going forward in the second half. I guess at times we were complacent with our possession in the first half. However, we created numerous chances in the second half to put the game away” stated midfielder Dan Metzger.

In the second half, Scotty Thomsen finished from 12 yards out after some tremendous play on the flank by Antonio Matarazzo, who flicked a great pass to Dan Metzger who found Thomsen running into the box. In the 86th minute, Brandon Allen scored his second goal of the day after Antonio Matarazzo played a great pass into his feet and Allen turned on goal and rifled into the lower right hand corner.

Red Bull U-16 squads splits the weekend on the road: The Red Bull U-16s started the weekend off strong as they managed a 2-1 victory against Delco. The Red Bulls jumped out to a two-goal lead against Delco in the first half on goals from Eric Lagg and Bolu Akinyode. Ross Tetro assisted both goals. Delco managed to get one back before half but the Red Bulls limited Delco to very few chances in the second half for the 2-1 win away from home.

On Sunday, The Red Bulls couldn't build on the momentum they had from beating Delco on Saturday and lost to PA Classics 4-1.

U-15 Red Bulls tie Delco 2-2 and beat Pa Classics 6-0 in weekend action: The Red Bulls U-15 squad came out strong against Delco on Saturday and took a 2-0 lead into the final 10 minutes before giving up two late goals that gave Delco a 2-2 tie.

On Sunday, the Red Bulls made sure they would finish their chances as they overwhelmed PA Classics en route to a 6-0 win. Vincent Brunetti continued to add to his team leading goal scoring tally with two very good goals in the first half to get the Red Bulls rolling. The U-15s will go on the road next weekend as they travel to face Boston and Seacoast.

U-14 Red Bulls defeat PA Classics 4-0: The U-14 Red Bulls scored early in the game on a goal by right back Tyler Pinho off a feed from Malcolm Dixon and never looked back. The Red Bulls continued to press the attack but were unable to score again the first half. In the second half the Red Bulls broke through three more times on goals by James Buonavita, Dante Perez and Tyler Pinho, who added his second of the game. The U-14 squad will travel next week to face Boston and Seacoast.

U-13 Red Bulls defeat local rival NJSA 2-0: On Sunday, The U-13 Red Bulls came out and controlled possession throughout the first half against NJSA but were unable to break the tie. The second half was a much more even game with NJSA stepping up and pressuring defensively but the Red Bulls were able to break that pressure late in the game when AJ Kmiec sent a through ball to Orestis Sousonis, who fired the ball into the back of the net. The Red Bulls sealed the win when Malik Stewart finished a through ball from Callum Johnson to give the Red Bulls the 2-0 win.

"I was happy with the way the team played in the first half but we lost our rhythm in the second half until the last ten minutes when we settled down and were able to score the two goals" said Coach Antonio Meza.